The present invention relates to methods for playing a casino game in the nature of poker using one or more decks of conventional playing cards. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for playing a casino wagering game which is a variation of five-card stud poker.
Poker is a popular game throughout the world. It combines principles of card games known for centuries in Europe but in its present form it is distinctly of American origin. There are numerous forms of Poker and the main divisions are: Draw Poker, in which all of a player's cards are unknown to his opponents and Stud Poker, in which some of the player's cards are face up and others face down.
Within the above two broad categories numerous variations exist with “Holdem” or “Texas Holdem” being a popular example. In “Holdem” each player makes an ante wager and is dealt two cards face down. After a betting interval three communal cards are dealt face up. A second betting interval follows and the dealer then turns up one more communal card. Another betting round follows after which the dealer turns up the final communal card and the player with the highest Poker ranked hand assembled from their own cards and the five communal cards wins the pot.
In modern casinos Poker takes one of three forms: live or cardroom Poker where players compete against one another but the games are controlled and supervised by a house dealer who removes a house levy either in the form of a participation fee or as a percentage of winning hands; electronic video machines offering various forms of Poker; and Poker played as a “bankers game” either where the game involves players in contest with the dealer's hand or where the object is for the players to obtain a hand based on hierarchical Poker rankings. In both versions of Banker games the house enjoys a favorable advantage based on a pay table that is structured in such a way that the pay-offs are not based on the true mathematical odds, or rules of play so structured that the house has a favorable edge.
The growth in casinos has prompted the introduction of new games and variations to established games and numerous patents have been granted in this field. For example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,836,553 and 4,948,134 (Suttle et al.) a casino type Poker game is disclosed in which players each play against a dealer (a banked game). If a player wins, he receives a bonus payment depending on the Poker rank of his hand.
Various other patents disclose further variations to traditional forms of Poker. Sklansky U.S. Pat. No. 5,382,025 discloses a modification of Texas Holdem whereby players do not compete against one another and whereby players have the opportunity to select their two card hand from a plurality of hands dealt face-up. Breeding U.S. Pat. No. 5,417,430 discloses a Poker banker game in which the players place three bets at the outset but as the game unfolds the players are given the option of withdrawing two of their wagers. Potter et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,494,295 disclose an invention which provides a method whereby a plurality of hand ranking rules can be utilized within a single type wagering game.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,553 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,861,041 (both to Jones et al) disclose variations which are collectively referred to as Caribbean Stud™ poker. In the preferred method of play described in the '553 patent, the game commences with each player placing a preliminary bet (“ante”) at a designated location on a table layout. The house dealer deals five cards to each player and to himself, all face down except for one card in the hand of the dealer. Having viewed his hand and assessed the chances, each player can elect to retire from the round at that point (to “fold”) in which event the player forfeits his amount of the ante to the house. The alternative is for the player to make an additional bet—typically prescribed by house rules to be double the amount originally anted—whereupon the dealer reveals his entire hand. Provided that the dealer's hand has a poker value of at least Ace-King, the game progresses with the dealer comparing his hand to that of each pair and paying or collecting bets as appropriate. Poker hands of two pair or better are rewarded by payment of better than even odds on such hand of a winning player.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,861,041 discloses the optional super addition to Caribbean Stud™ of a “progressive jackpot” in which a player may at his option participates in that jackpot by making an additional jackpot wager of some predetermined amount, e.g. a playing token. The jackpot wagers submitted by all players are cumulated. The jackpot is paid out in whole or in part from time to time on the strength of the poker hand held by the winning jackpot bettor. Insofar as the amounts of the jackpot not won in a hand are carried over to the next, the jackpot is “progressive”. The '041 patent and Jones et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,078,405 disclose totalizing apparatus including slots in which each player may deposit a gaming token towards the jackpot component, if desired and means for increasing or decreasing the jackpot meter as money is paid into or out of the jackpot. These two patents are incorporated herein by reference for their teaching of token-operated apparatus for keeping a running jackpot total.
In another variation of five-card stud poker for casino play, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,901,858 (Andrews), is carried out with one or more “royal” decks of twenty cards each—namely the 10's and face cards of each suit. Unlike Caribbean Stud™ described above, only three cards are dealt face down to each player and only two to the house dealer. One of the dealer's cards is displayed as a face-up community card for consideration by each player for use as the fourth card of the player's ultimate five-card poker hand. Having viewed his three cards and the community card, each player has the option of either standing on the “bet” wager which he initially placed on the game table or, if optimistic, placing a second (equivalent) “additional” wager on the “play” position and turning the three cards of the hand face up. That done, the dealer turns up the second of dealer's two cards as a second community card. The negative five-card poker hand of all players are evaluated and payouts are made according to a payout table.
A different game, commonly referred to as “Let it Ride” is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,288,081 (Breeding). Each player must place down three equal bets, whereupon the dealer deals three cards to each player and to the dealer, but then discards out of play (“burns”) one of the dealer's three cards, sight unseen, leaving the dealer with only two cards. Alternatively, the dealer may simply deal three cards down to each player and refrain from dealing himself a third card. At that point, each player must decide whether to take back the first of his three bets or else to “let it ride.” The dealer then turns up one of the two community cards so that each player, now in effect in possession of four cards of the ultimate five-card hand, is put to a decision whether to withdraw the second bet from the table or to let that bet ride. The third bet is not retrievable When dealer then turns over the second and last of his cards, play comes to an end, the players show their cards, and all bets still on the table are resolved and distributed according to the poker ranking of each bettor's hand.
In various of these games the participants are provided the option of discarding some or all of the cards which they were originally dealt. Such option can slow down the game causing it to lose momentum. There is a need for a new game where players both compete against one another and against the house and where the final result is delivered quickly to maximize the momentum of games played one after another.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a casino variation of five-card stud which allows players to bet against the house and each other while quickly revealing the results of each game.
While certain novel features of this invention shown and described below are pointed out in the annexed claims, the invention is not intended to be limited to the details specified, since a person of ordinary skill in the relevant art will understand that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention. No feature of the invention is critical or essential unless it is expressly stated as being “critical” or “essential.”